Hello,
I remember that frightful morning in October like it was yesterday, waking up to an email that told me that Digital Railroad had just 48hrs left to live, and that anything left on the servers would be erased and gone forever. Now, this was tough to take at the time, and thinking back to the havoc and stressed it caused me, much of my anger still hasn't subsided. While I knew a lot of the DRR managers and editors personally, and I don't blame them for this, I simply can't believe that an entire company servicing so many can vanish so quickly. I know there are a lot of horror stories out there from the DRR collapse and many were much worse than mine, but below is a brief summary of my difficulties.
I became a loyal member of Digital Railroad in the summer of 2005. I thought the service was genius, a chance to manage and display my own images to clients. I bought in to the service, used it and promoted it heavily to other photographers I knew. Life was bliss for years. No service interruptions, no problems, no issues to report at all. Actually I think once there was a service interruption when they were upgrading servers and lost images temporarily, but within a day or two everything was backed up and back online. So, apart from that issue DRR fulfilled all it's promises to customers like me who wanted more control over our own archives.
Then came the Marketplace, DRR's big move to enter the stock photo industry by using images they had stored on their system by members like me. It seemed like a decent natural progression, the problem was that it seemed like DRR had to really expand their sales operation and "ramp up", so to speak.
Now throughout my career I've always backed up everything: digital files, RAW, TIFF and scanned negs. So when DRR went down I didn't actually lose anything per say. So, if I didn't lose anything why has it taken me so long to get my archive back up and running at full capacity?
What I lost was organization. What I lost was some captioning information. What I lost was the hours and hours it took to upload all those images through the Chinese firewall. Now, I had over 7000 images in my archive, a collection of corporate and editorial work, organized in to hundreds of groups and galleries.
Digital Railroad, or I should say management company handling the sale of assets, told everyone that they had only 48hrs to get everything off the site. That wasn't exactly true, they allowed more than a week. My goal when I first got the message about the shut down was, this is no problem. I can just FTP everything to my new archive space at photoshelter, the problem was that all of the 1500 independent photographers and dozens of agencies all thought the same thing at the exact same moment. Needless to say the bandwidth was so jammed during that week I only managed to get about 20% of the images FTP'd across safely, and much of those images were corrupted and had to be "replaced" later.
From mid-October to just last week was the time it took to replace, upload, re-caption (some) and re-organize my entire archive. The reason it took so long was complicated. First I live in China and bandwidth here is severely restricted. The firewall means that anything FTP'd from China has to leave at a snails pace, and even all the hotels I stay in when I am working didn't offer much better internet connections then what I had at my home. I've had to leave my computer on every night uploading and FTP to photoshelter for months now. The second reason was that I was working consistently for that entire stretch and things just never managed to finish it off. The last reason is simply that the task at hand was so large and daunting, I had a lot of starts and stops and even hired a few people to help me out during times.
What did I learn from the whole mess? Nothing really. I back images up and apart from keeping two seperate completely updated archives I don't think there is much I could have done differently. Having a full time assistant would have made my recovery time faster but I don't have one. So there it is, just a huge cluster F*ck that nobody predicted and that almost everyone got caught in. Painful, very painful.
What are my plans going forward? Simply to keep my photoshelter archive (http://archive.ryanpyle.com) as updated and current as possible, and continue to add strong images to it. I hope another DRR meltdown will never happen again, but now that photoshelter picked up all the extra business from DRR they should be sitting pretty for years to come. Fingers crossed.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Friday, January 23, 2009
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Ryan Pyle Blog: The Year of the Anniversary
Hello,
Every year we move forward we end up celebrating an anniversary for something that happened in years past; whether it be as small an act as adopting a baby puppy from a pound or beginning a new career or even getting married.
So as the year of 2009 gets going I've sat back and looked at my calender and I'm utterly speechless. Living in China and being a "China Watcher" I'm blown away by the sheer number of major anniversaries that China will be lining up to celebrate (and pretend never happened) this year. Let's take a quick at a few of these, in no particular order.
1) Of course the big daddy of them all will occur on October 1st 2009, marking the 60th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China. It was 60 years ago that the Communist Army pushed out the Japanese and sent the KMT in to exile in Taiwan. Preparations are already under way in Beijing for a grand military showing, roads are already said to be reinforced. Zhang Yimou, the creative force behind the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, has been commissioned to come up with something for this show of shows. Watch out for another city lock down and potential visa problems. Five star hotels, brace for another season of bleak occupancy rates.
2) Reform and Opening continues on. December 1978 and January 1979 where key dates for China's reform and opening movement initiated under, then President, Deng Xiao Ping. While the 30th anniversary was officially celebrated in the middle of last December expect there to be a lot of continued talk about China's 30 years of capitalism; especially if the current crisis worsens.
3) The year of 2009 will also mark the 50th anniversary of the Dali Lama's exit from Tibet. That's right, in March 1959 the Dali Lama had to flee Lhasa for India, and begin his life in exile. It's generally assumed that there may be activity in various parts of China this year to commemorate that event. All eyes are, no doubt, watching. Just remember that in March it'll have been a full one year since the Tibet riots that left several Chinese shop keepers dead. There could be a lot of mixed emotions on both sides (Tibetan and Chinese) of this and clashes of culture and religion could occur. As an aside I've already had a Tibetan guide tell me that government officials are already suggesting to tour guides to keep foreign tourists out of Western Sichuan, which is a Tibetan region, during that time.
4) It's been 20 years since June 4th 1989. Tiananmen Square demonstrations have left an tough legacy for China to deal with. The idea of pretending it never happened as worked well enough so far, loads of people are still in jail and the rest under house arrest - and China's economy is still the main reason why most governments around the world self censor themselves about this issue. What might occur for the 20th anniversary? Nothing is most likely the correct answer. Expect another city lock down. As an aside, Ma Jian wrote a book published last year titled "Beijing Coma" in which he talks a about the Tiananmen Square days in 1989. His take seems to be that many of the student leaders of that movement may have been much less democratic that originally thought, using democracy in the name of installing another authoritarian regime? We may never know the truth, but it makes an interesting read.
5) August 8th 2008 was the moment when China entered the world stage, and billions around the world tuned in their TV's to watch a spectacle that could have only been duplicated in North Korea. I was blown away by the opening ceremony, and I even have a fake dvd copy of the event. And the date of August the 8th will be celebrated each years as a day to promote sports and physical activity in China.
6) Another new anniversary wins for being the most confusing of the bunch, the Chinese government has just recently announced that March 28 is going to become a yearly holiday in China, and it's going to commemorate the ending of slavery in Tibet. As the government sees things, Tibet was a horrible and cruel civilization dominated by poverty and slavery. The official line is that the Chinese government rescued the Tibetan people from their own government leaders and freed them. Apparently this occurred in March 1959, the same time Tibetan leaders fled to India and around the same time as around one million Tibetans were slaughtered in a one sided defense of their Himalayan kingdom. When asked to comment about the one year anniversary of the riots last year in Lhasa a Tibetan women (held at knife point, maybe?) said "After all these happy years for us, it's a shame that the Dali Lama is still trying to ruin things and reinstall serfdom." Confusing times for ahead for all of us. I needed a machete to just to get through the propaganda in the China Daily this weekend.
7) On May 12th it'll be one year since the Sichuan earthquake that killed 88,000 people. This anniversary is one that sits close to me because I spent about 16 days in the quake zone just after it happened and I was overwhelmed by the destructive force of mother nature. I still to this day believe that the casualty rate is much higher than official numbers suggest, easily topping 100,000. I don't know what a government would gain by artificially keeping the numbers down, but perhaps I'm wrong. Either way some 15,000 to 20,000 of the dead where school children who died when their schools collapsed around them mostly due to poor construction. In some towns other buildings were left standing while schools, right next door, lay in rubble. Expect the parents of the dead school children to continue hassling not only local government officials but by traveling to Beijing in order to make official requests and complaints. It's pretty clear the parents aren't interested in hush money, they want heads to roll and it'll be interesting to see if Beijing feeds any of it's own to the sharks. My guess is more arrested parents.
8) My last point is one of wishful thinking. I hope that sometime this year the Chinese government adjusts it's legal system to allow for less political collusion. If they complete this task this year, then in 2010 I can sit back and write an updated version of this blog and praise the government for taking real steps to reform in 2009. You see, the local county and provincial courts all report to the Party Secretary for the province, not to Beijing. So essentially the Party Secretary for a province is a God-like figure that decides what does and doesn't stand as acceptable behavior. But what's been happening a lot is that local people fed up with government corruption have been caught for crimes like trying to travel to Beijing to tell on them, or even contacting foreign media. These crimes, because of their political nature, tend to stay under the radar and are handled at the local level - never reaching ear shot of Beijing; not that Beijing has a track record of over turning anything or standing for much more than the will of the party.
It's my opinion, based on my frequent travels and conversations, that this country may very well tear itself apart sometime in the next decade, especially if economic hardship hits, and something that might legitimize the Communist rule in the eyes of the people is to free up the legal system and allow provincial courts to report to a central court in Beijing, and to keep the party officials out of the loop. With all the talk that our current Chinese leaders splash out about ending corruption in China; that would be the first big step forwards. And it would quickly differentiate between the honest, hard working government leaders (of which there are many) and the scum. So that is one anniversary that I would like to celebrate in 2010. Let's hope there might be someone out there, high enough up the food chain, who feels like I do. But I'm not holding my breath.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Every year we move forward we end up celebrating an anniversary for something that happened in years past; whether it be as small an act as adopting a baby puppy from a pound or beginning a new career or even getting married.
So as the year of 2009 gets going I've sat back and looked at my calender and I'm utterly speechless. Living in China and being a "China Watcher" I'm blown away by the sheer number of major anniversaries that China will be lining up to celebrate (and pretend never happened) this year. Let's take a quick at a few of these, in no particular order.
1) Of course the big daddy of them all will occur on October 1st 2009, marking the 60th Anniversary of the People's Republic of China. It was 60 years ago that the Communist Army pushed out the Japanese and sent the KMT in to exile in Taiwan. Preparations are already under way in Beijing for a grand military showing, roads are already said to be reinforced. Zhang Yimou, the creative force behind the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, has been commissioned to come up with something for this show of shows. Watch out for another city lock down and potential visa problems. Five star hotels, brace for another season of bleak occupancy rates.
2) Reform and Opening continues on. December 1978 and January 1979 where key dates for China's reform and opening movement initiated under, then President, Deng Xiao Ping. While the 30th anniversary was officially celebrated in the middle of last December expect there to be a lot of continued talk about China's 30 years of capitalism; especially if the current crisis worsens.
3) The year of 2009 will also mark the 50th anniversary of the Dali Lama's exit from Tibet. That's right, in March 1959 the Dali Lama had to flee Lhasa for India, and begin his life in exile. It's generally assumed that there may be activity in various parts of China this year to commemorate that event. All eyes are, no doubt, watching. Just remember that in March it'll have been a full one year since the Tibet riots that left several Chinese shop keepers dead. There could be a lot of mixed emotions on both sides (Tibetan and Chinese) of this and clashes of culture and religion could occur. As an aside I've already had a Tibetan guide tell me that government officials are already suggesting to tour guides to keep foreign tourists out of Western Sichuan, which is a Tibetan region, during that time.
4) It's been 20 years since June 4th 1989. Tiananmen Square demonstrations have left an tough legacy for China to deal with. The idea of pretending it never happened as worked well enough so far, loads of people are still in jail and the rest under house arrest - and China's economy is still the main reason why most governments around the world self censor themselves about this issue. What might occur for the 20th anniversary? Nothing is most likely the correct answer. Expect another city lock down. As an aside, Ma Jian wrote a book published last year titled "Beijing Coma" in which he talks a about the Tiananmen Square days in 1989. His take seems to be that many of the student leaders of that movement may have been much less democratic that originally thought, using democracy in the name of installing another authoritarian regime? We may never know the truth, but it makes an interesting read.
5) August 8th 2008 was the moment when China entered the world stage, and billions around the world tuned in their TV's to watch a spectacle that could have only been duplicated in North Korea. I was blown away by the opening ceremony, and I even have a fake dvd copy of the event. And the date of August the 8th will be celebrated each years as a day to promote sports and physical activity in China.
6) Another new anniversary wins for being the most confusing of the bunch, the Chinese government has just recently announced that March 28 is going to become a yearly holiday in China, and it's going to commemorate the ending of slavery in Tibet. As the government sees things, Tibet was a horrible and cruel civilization dominated by poverty and slavery. The official line is that the Chinese government rescued the Tibetan people from their own government leaders and freed them. Apparently this occurred in March 1959, the same time Tibetan leaders fled to India and around the same time as around one million Tibetans were slaughtered in a one sided defense of their Himalayan kingdom. When asked to comment about the one year anniversary of the riots last year in Lhasa a Tibetan women (held at knife point, maybe?) said "After all these happy years for us, it's a shame that the Dali Lama is still trying to ruin things and reinstall serfdom." Confusing times for ahead for all of us. I needed a machete to just to get through the propaganda in the China Daily this weekend.
7) On May 12th it'll be one year since the Sichuan earthquake that killed 88,000 people. This anniversary is one that sits close to me because I spent about 16 days in the quake zone just after it happened and I was overwhelmed by the destructive force of mother nature. I still to this day believe that the casualty rate is much higher than official numbers suggest, easily topping 100,000. I don't know what a government would gain by artificially keeping the numbers down, but perhaps I'm wrong. Either way some 15,000 to 20,000 of the dead where school children who died when their schools collapsed around them mostly due to poor construction. In some towns other buildings were left standing while schools, right next door, lay in rubble. Expect the parents of the dead school children to continue hassling not only local government officials but by traveling to Beijing in order to make official requests and complaints. It's pretty clear the parents aren't interested in hush money, they want heads to roll and it'll be interesting to see if Beijing feeds any of it's own to the sharks. My guess is more arrested parents.
8) My last point is one of wishful thinking. I hope that sometime this year the Chinese government adjusts it's legal system to allow for less political collusion. If they complete this task this year, then in 2010 I can sit back and write an updated version of this blog and praise the government for taking real steps to reform in 2009. You see, the local county and provincial courts all report to the Party Secretary for the province, not to Beijing. So essentially the Party Secretary for a province is a God-like figure that decides what does and doesn't stand as acceptable behavior. But what's been happening a lot is that local people fed up with government corruption have been caught for crimes like trying to travel to Beijing to tell on them, or even contacting foreign media. These crimes, because of their political nature, tend to stay under the radar and are handled at the local level - never reaching ear shot of Beijing; not that Beijing has a track record of over turning anything or standing for much more than the will of the party.
It's my opinion, based on my frequent travels and conversations, that this country may very well tear itself apart sometime in the next decade, especially if economic hardship hits, and something that might legitimize the Communist rule in the eyes of the people is to free up the legal system and allow provincial courts to report to a central court in Beijing, and to keep the party officials out of the loop. With all the talk that our current Chinese leaders splash out about ending corruption in China; that would be the first big step forwards. And it would quickly differentiate between the honest, hard working government leaders (of which there are many) and the scum. So that is one anniversary that I would like to celebrate in 2010. Let's hope there might be someone out there, high enough up the food chain, who feels like I do. But I'm not holding my breath.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Ryan Pyle Blog: Attack of the Confusing Credit
Hello,
I've been waiting to write this blog for months, and I finally had my nerve broken by a picture credit in the New York Times over the weekend; more on that below.
So, let me first start off by saying that for years I've been confused by picture credits, and as a photographer I'm concerned. I think the big picture agencies started confusing people a few years back when they stopped adding actual names with image credits. For example, how often do you see an image credit "REUTERS" and not "John Smith/REUTERS". I'm not familiar with the business terms with agency photographers but I've always been someone who thinks that images should always have the photographers names in the credit. Perhaps I'm just old fashioned but I like to know who is shooting what, and where - even if I've never even heard of the photographer before. I take a lot of comfort in knowing that there is an actual human being standing somewhere with a camera trying his or her best to capture the moment, all in the name of journalist integrity; and thereafter getting credit when that image is used. REUTERS was just used as an example, EPA, AP, AFP and Getty are all in on it as well. I know that sometimes agencies do this to protect the identity of the photographer, for example picture credits coming from Myanmar after the cyclone that it in 2008 when the government blocked aid and journalists from the country, and that's understandable. But is there a logical reason for all the other cases? Can anyone shed some light on this issue?
My second point I'd like to talk about is picture credits coming from war zones and regions where natural disasters occur. For example, during the May earthquake in Sichuan province Getty images, AP and a host of other agencies were syndicating images from China Photos and Xinhua News Agency. This is a partnership that has existed for several years where Chinese photographers contribute to local agencies in based in the mainland and through syndication end up having their images used around the world. It makes a lot of business sense, but ethically I think there are some loopholes. For example, who are these Chinese photographers? What are their names? Are they military photographers or journalists? Are the images made in a way that respects the subjects and the surrounding situation? Are the situations staged? China has some incredibly gifted photographers but the country lacks on integrity and any sort of journalism standards. There have been several well documented cases in the past were Chinese photographers have won major international awards only to later confess their documentary images were staged. And furthermore should the sale of images by major American agencies be aiding the Chinese military (if they are behind the syndication)? I believe that the big agencies should have to live up to these questions if they want to syndicate the work.
Lastly, is the photography agency VII. Just in the last week I saw 3 different picture credits from this one agency. The first was from one of the founding members, "John Smith/VII". The second was a photographer from their network of non-members but very gifted photographers, "John Smith/VII Network". And just this past weekend I saw a New York Times credit from the Congo of another photographer who was credited "John Smith/VII Mentor". So, what does it all mean? Is anyone as confused as I am. Obviously it's a great honor to be a part of a prestigious agency, but if you are part of a mentorship program is that really something you can credit in a publication? If I did an internship at Magnum and was shooting on my off days for a magazine could I credit myself as "John Smith/Magnum Intern"? Where is the line drawn?
Now, don't go and misunderstand me. Gifted photography is wide spread amongst the big american agencies, the Chinese agencies and top dogs like VII, but I wish the captioning was more straight forward. While there may well be a clear and simply answer for each of the questions and somewhat confusing situations I've described above, they don't appear obvious to me; and I consider myself to be in the business - or at least on the fringes.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I've been waiting to write this blog for months, and I finally had my nerve broken by a picture credit in the New York Times over the weekend; more on that below.
So, let me first start off by saying that for years I've been confused by picture credits, and as a photographer I'm concerned. I think the big picture agencies started confusing people a few years back when they stopped adding actual names with image credits. For example, how often do you see an image credit "REUTERS" and not "John Smith/REUTERS". I'm not familiar with the business terms with agency photographers but I've always been someone who thinks that images should always have the photographers names in the credit. Perhaps I'm just old fashioned but I like to know who is shooting what, and where - even if I've never even heard of the photographer before. I take a lot of comfort in knowing that there is an actual human being standing somewhere with a camera trying his or her best to capture the moment, all in the name of journalist integrity; and thereafter getting credit when that image is used. REUTERS was just used as an example, EPA, AP, AFP and Getty are all in on it as well. I know that sometimes agencies do this to protect the identity of the photographer, for example picture credits coming from Myanmar after the cyclone that it in 2008 when the government blocked aid and journalists from the country, and that's understandable. But is there a logical reason for all the other cases? Can anyone shed some light on this issue?
My second point I'd like to talk about is picture credits coming from war zones and regions where natural disasters occur. For example, during the May earthquake in Sichuan province Getty images, AP and a host of other agencies were syndicating images from China Photos and Xinhua News Agency. This is a partnership that has existed for several years where Chinese photographers contribute to local agencies in based in the mainland and through syndication end up having their images used around the world. It makes a lot of business sense, but ethically I think there are some loopholes. For example, who are these Chinese photographers? What are their names? Are they military photographers or journalists? Are the images made in a way that respects the subjects and the surrounding situation? Are the situations staged? China has some incredibly gifted photographers but the country lacks on integrity and any sort of journalism standards. There have been several well documented cases in the past were Chinese photographers have won major international awards only to later confess their documentary images were staged. And furthermore should the sale of images by major American agencies be aiding the Chinese military (if they are behind the syndication)? I believe that the big agencies should have to live up to these questions if they want to syndicate the work.
Lastly, is the photography agency VII. Just in the last week I saw 3 different picture credits from this one agency. The first was from one of the founding members, "John Smith/VII". The second was a photographer from their network of non-members but very gifted photographers, "John Smith/VII Network". And just this past weekend I saw a New York Times credit from the Congo of another photographer who was credited "John Smith/VII Mentor". So, what does it all mean? Is anyone as confused as I am. Obviously it's a great honor to be a part of a prestigious agency, but if you are part of a mentorship program is that really something you can credit in a publication? If I did an internship at Magnum and was shooting on my off days for a magazine could I credit myself as "John Smith/Magnum Intern"? Where is the line drawn?
Now, don't go and misunderstand me. Gifted photography is wide spread amongst the big american agencies, the Chinese agencies and top dogs like VII, but I wish the captioning was more straight forward. While there may well be a clear and simply answer for each of the questions and somewhat confusing situations I've described above, they don't appear obvious to me; and I consider myself to be in the business - or at least on the fringes.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Monday, January 05, 2009
Ryan Pyle Blog: Forward to 2009
Hello,
After enjoying a relaxing and festive holiday season, I'm back at my computer today trying to find direction and purpose for 2009. It's a process that's never easy, and given the rapid deterioration of the publishing industry, this year will stretch the limits of photographers as magazines try to do more with less.
So how does a photographer, like me, who relies on editorial assignments manage in this faltering economy? It clearly won't be easy for anyone to maneuver effectively in this environment. I haven't talked much about how I see my photography career developing or my ideas about how to make a living; but I think my mantra can be summed up in just a few words: "Don't sit on your hands; don't wait for the phone to ring".
What that means exactly is that photographers need to take pictures in order to sell pictures, and need to constantly be fine tuning their skill and vision. So sitting around and waiting for the phone to ring means wasting a whole lot of time. I try to stay working all the time whether on assignment or not. That means basically that I keep a long list of photo stories and projects that I have ready to work on for time between assignments. And I feel this could be the year that this list of mine finally gets a good work out.
How can I fund these personal projects if I am not taking assignments? Well, pictures are my business as well as my passion and my full time job, so I am well versed in how to earn a living from my imagery. I earn a stock income from work I've shot previously, I also have started making my way in to producing fine art black and white work for gallery shows. Beyond that I dabble in corporate photography and one time I worked in a studio and was paid for my work - but it was a little daunting.
I think the key in 2009, for me, will be to pursue topics in China of my own particular interest and hope that I can introduce this work to interested magazines and newspapers as features and stock. I'll continue visiting Xinjiang when I can to continue my black and white work; things should continue on without too much change; though I can't see myself getting too many 4 or 5 day assignments for New York, London or Hamburg anytime in the near future.
Let's keep our fingers crossed that magazines stop folding and the market for images and art continues to grow in these difficult times. If things go all wrong I'm sure I'll be quick to blog about it and try to keep people informed. Until then. Best of luck everyone out there.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
After enjoying a relaxing and festive holiday season, I'm back at my computer today trying to find direction and purpose for 2009. It's a process that's never easy, and given the rapid deterioration of the publishing industry, this year will stretch the limits of photographers as magazines try to do more with less.
So how does a photographer, like me, who relies on editorial assignments manage in this faltering economy? It clearly won't be easy for anyone to maneuver effectively in this environment. I haven't talked much about how I see my photography career developing or my ideas about how to make a living; but I think my mantra can be summed up in just a few words: "Don't sit on your hands; don't wait for the phone to ring".
What that means exactly is that photographers need to take pictures in order to sell pictures, and need to constantly be fine tuning their skill and vision. So sitting around and waiting for the phone to ring means wasting a whole lot of time. I try to stay working all the time whether on assignment or not. That means basically that I keep a long list of photo stories and projects that I have ready to work on for time between assignments. And I feel this could be the year that this list of mine finally gets a good work out.
How can I fund these personal projects if I am not taking assignments? Well, pictures are my business as well as my passion and my full time job, so I am well versed in how to earn a living from my imagery. I earn a stock income from work I've shot previously, I also have started making my way in to producing fine art black and white work for gallery shows. Beyond that I dabble in corporate photography and one time I worked in a studio and was paid for my work - but it was a little daunting.
I think the key in 2009, for me, will be to pursue topics in China of my own particular interest and hope that I can introduce this work to interested magazines and newspapers as features and stock. I'll continue visiting Xinjiang when I can to continue my black and white work; things should continue on without too much change; though I can't see myself getting too many 4 or 5 day assignments for New York, London or Hamburg anytime in the near future.
Let's keep our fingers crossed that magazines stop folding and the market for images and art continues to grow in these difficult times. If things go all wrong I'm sure I'll be quick to blog about it and try to keep people informed. Until then. Best of luck everyone out there.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Face Transplant Recipient Confirmed Dead
Hello,
I wanted to make you aware of some breaking news in China. It appears that Li Guoxing, the first recipient of a face transplant surgery in China as been confirmed dead. Li Guoxing received a face transplant surgery in 2006 from surgeon Guo Shuzhong in Xi'an, China. If you can remember Mr. Li, 30 years old when he had the surgery, had is face ripped off by a bear while hunting in rural Yunnan province where he lived in a small village community. Mr. Li's death, it has been said, was due to an infection because he wasn't taking prescribed immune-system drugs properly. Another report says he was favoring herbal medicines instead. No final report on the death will be available because Mr. Li has been buried for several months now, and no autopsy was completed.
Li Guoxing's surgery in 2006 was a ground breaking moment for Chinese surgery and something that I, as a photographer, was interested in covering. Although because I was a foreign journalist in China I was denied access to document Li Guoxing for almost a year after the surgery. In the summer of 2007 I was able to travel to Xi'an and, with Dr. Guo Zhuzhong's permission, follow Li Guoxing for a few days and document his life 1 year after the surgery. I had scheduled a visit to Mr. Li's village for 2009 to see how he was coping with his surgery in his natural environment, but that story won't be possible. Below is a link to the photo essay I shot of Li Guoxing when I visited the hospital in Xi'an in 2007. Above is a slide show of that essay. Also below is the most recent AFP story.
LINK: CLICK HERE TO SEARCH ARCHIVE
STORY: BEIJING (AFP) — A Chinese man who received a rare face transplant in 2006 has died, his doctor and a government official confirmed Saturday, highlighting the risks of a recent groundbreaking US operation.
Li Guoxing, 32, died in July at his rural home in rugged southwestern China after forsaking immune-system drugs in favor of herbal medicine, his surgeon Guo Shuzhong told AFP.
"His death was not caused by the surgery. Our operation was a success. But we cannot rule out a connection with the immune system drugs," said Guo, a surgeon with Xijing Hospital in the northern city of Xian who operated on Li in April 2006.
Qiao Guangliang, chief of Li's village in mountainous Yunnan province, also confirmed the death to AFP.
Both men said the exact cause of death was unknown as no autopsy was performed.
Li's death had been rumoured on Chinese blogs but has received scant attention in the mainstream press.
US doctors in Cleveland said last week they conducted the world's first near-total facial transplant on a disfigured woman.
It was just the fourth known facial transplant.
Doctors in France had performed the first partial transplant in 2005 on a 38-year-old woman disfigured in a dog attack.
The next year, Li, a farmer, underwent an apparently successful operation to replace about half his face after it was ripped off by a wild bear.
A 29-year-old French man then underwent surgery in 2007 for a facial tumor.
Guo said Li defied orders to remain in hospital and went home in late 2007.
Li soon stopped taking prescribed drugs in favour of a local herbal medicine, which Guo said may have caused liver damage.
Guo said the remoteness of Li's home had meant he could not make it to hospital for regular check-ups.
"After his death, I went to Yunnan and suggested an autopsy but his relatives refused" because Li had already been buried, Guo said.
AFP was not immediately able to reach Li's family members.
The US woman, whose identity has been kept secret, has shown no signs of rejecting her transplant, doctors said.
However, facial transplants remain controversial because of the risks and because they are driven by cosmetic, rather than life-saving concerns.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Friday, December 19, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: "Better Services for Foreign Media" in China
Hello,
I wanted to share some fine fiction I read in the China Daily just last week. The government has held a press conference indicating that the government officially welcomes more journalists from abroad to cover news events in China. The real slap in the face was that they had the nerve to, in the same breath, mention that they are extending better service and freedom to Chinese journalists as well as foreign journalists. I don't know how anyone who follows my blog feels when they read news like this, but for me - it makes my guts turn.
China is, bar none, one of the most difficult countries to work in as a foreign journalist; and for a Chinese journalist you are essentially taking your life, the life of your family and even close friends, in your hands if you want to publish any kind of investigative reporting. While it's true that the life of a foreign journalist is not in danger, as it is in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia and others, it is painstaking at every turn. And that's one of the reasons why a lot of well known photographers actually refuse to accept jobs in China because the bureaucracy and the difficulty of working freely just wares them down too much. All I can say to that is, yes.........yes it does ware you down. In fact, it's down right exhausting. So how are things supposedly changing?
Well, this is the kicker. They aren't really. In the 1990s, from what I've herd, things were really tough for foreign journalists. The country was closed off and there were few foreigners moving around the country at that time, so anyone who wanted to take a quick trip to a remote province was either a journalist or a spy. After the turn of the century things have opened up a lot more. More travelers, better infrastructure and more access to outsiders have created a countryside in China where towns and villages are accessible to travel to. But that doesn't mean that you are free to report from there, in fact, far from it.
Intimidation, confiscation and detention all still exist. You won't have to read too far into my past blogs to find stories about thugs in cars with tinted windows that pull you over and ask for your cameras, all without showing any ID at all. You don't have to travel too far outside of Beijing, or Shanghai, to find a lawless countryside where local officials intimidate and bend laws to get there ways. In fact, just a few weeks ago a report was published in a Chinese newspaper that indicated that government officials were arresting whistle blows of government corruption and sending them to mental hospitals. Their only crime was trying to travel to Beijing to tell officials there how corrupt their county communist party leaders are. And this highlights where the real problem exists: the central government in Beijing as no control over what happens in the rest of the country. A powerful statement, but true.
China has, for centuries, been a provincial place. Emperors have always sat at the head of government in the Middle Kingdom and their influence has been far reaching, but only by bribing and power sharing deals worked out with local warlords. And after a my years in China, having worked in every province, I can tell you that little has changed. In exchange for a show of solidarity and support, the central government has pretty much given a free hand to the provinces to develop at their own will and pace; which in many cases means shocking human rights abuses and complete disregard for even the most basic law.
So what do I think of the news that things will free up? I think it will happen, but not because of any judgement handed down from Beijing. If it happens it'll happen because provincial officials and business men will see the benefit of having some media savvy, and they'll learn some day that intimidating media, and engaging this cat and mouse game only makes all sides bitter; and can often lead to negative reporting.
A journalist who has the time to freely enter a village and speak with all the voices and understand all sides of the story can write a much more objective piece than the journalist who has to sneak in under the cover of night and speak to one or two people and then get chased out by thugs in a Mitsubishi Land Rover; barely escaping to the main expressway which can ferry them to the neighboring province; and hence safety.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I wanted to share some fine fiction I read in the China Daily just last week. The government has held a press conference indicating that the government officially welcomes more journalists from abroad to cover news events in China. The real slap in the face was that they had the nerve to, in the same breath, mention that they are extending better service and freedom to Chinese journalists as well as foreign journalists. I don't know how anyone who follows my blog feels when they read news like this, but for me - it makes my guts turn.
China is, bar none, one of the most difficult countries to work in as a foreign journalist; and for a Chinese journalist you are essentially taking your life, the life of your family and even close friends, in your hands if you want to publish any kind of investigative reporting. While it's true that the life of a foreign journalist is not in danger, as it is in places like Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia and others, it is painstaking at every turn. And that's one of the reasons why a lot of well known photographers actually refuse to accept jobs in China because the bureaucracy and the difficulty of working freely just wares them down too much. All I can say to that is, yes.........yes it does ware you down. In fact, it's down right exhausting. So how are things supposedly changing?
Well, this is the kicker. They aren't really. In the 1990s, from what I've herd, things were really tough for foreign journalists. The country was closed off and there were few foreigners moving around the country at that time, so anyone who wanted to take a quick trip to a remote province was either a journalist or a spy. After the turn of the century things have opened up a lot more. More travelers, better infrastructure and more access to outsiders have created a countryside in China where towns and villages are accessible to travel to. But that doesn't mean that you are free to report from there, in fact, far from it.
Intimidation, confiscation and detention all still exist. You won't have to read too far into my past blogs to find stories about thugs in cars with tinted windows that pull you over and ask for your cameras, all without showing any ID at all. You don't have to travel too far outside of Beijing, or Shanghai, to find a lawless countryside where local officials intimidate and bend laws to get there ways. In fact, just a few weeks ago a report was published in a Chinese newspaper that indicated that government officials were arresting whistle blows of government corruption and sending them to mental hospitals. Their only crime was trying to travel to Beijing to tell officials there how corrupt their county communist party leaders are. And this highlights where the real problem exists: the central government in Beijing as no control over what happens in the rest of the country. A powerful statement, but true.
China has, for centuries, been a provincial place. Emperors have always sat at the head of government in the Middle Kingdom and their influence has been far reaching, but only by bribing and power sharing deals worked out with local warlords. And after a my years in China, having worked in every province, I can tell you that little has changed. In exchange for a show of solidarity and support, the central government has pretty much given a free hand to the provinces to develop at their own will and pace; which in many cases means shocking human rights abuses and complete disregard for even the most basic law.
So what do I think of the news that things will free up? I think it will happen, but not because of any judgement handed down from Beijing. If it happens it'll happen because provincial officials and business men will see the benefit of having some media savvy, and they'll learn some day that intimidating media, and engaging this cat and mouse game only makes all sides bitter; and can often lead to negative reporting.
A journalist who has the time to freely enter a village and speak with all the voices and understand all sides of the story can write a much more objective piece than the journalist who has to sneak in under the cover of night and speak to one or two people and then get chased out by thugs in a Mitsubishi Land Rover; barely escaping to the main expressway which can ferry them to the neighboring province; and hence safety.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Reform and Opening: 30 Years Old
Hello,
Today is a historic day. December 18th 2008 marks the 30th anniversary of Reform and Opening in China. That's right, modern China is exactly 30 years old today. And what an incredible 30 years it's been:
- 10%+ growth almost every year since 1980
- China now accounts for 6% Global GDP, in 1978 it was 1.8%
- A 70% increase in grain production
- 250 million people have lifted themselves out of abject poverty
- 200 million people have moved from the countryside to the city creating some dynamic world class cities like Shanghai and Beijing.
On December 18th 1978 Deng Xiaoping declared, after weeks of meetings and 2 years of internal in-fighting, that China was open for business. Since then the country has developed faster than any other country in history. This economic advancement has led to incredible social changes throughout the country and greatly altered the traditional way of life in China.
The key city to this Reform and Opening policy, and the economic boom that was to follow, was the border city of Shenzhen. Formerly a rice field, the city now boasts a stable population of over 10 million people, as well as one of the most successful, until recently, housing and job markets in the country. The city of Shenzhen has continually re-invented itself from being a border town, to a port and shipping town, to a manufacturing hub of textiles and low quality goods. Today it is home to some of China's most successful "home grown" companies like Huawei, BYD and Hansee.
Although, due to an economic crisis in around much of the world, much of the Shenzhen and Pearl River Delta manufacturing sector is currently struggling with rapidly falling demand in the United States and Europe; but the development of this region can not be overlooked as one of the main engines of Chinese growth for the last three decades.
I've been based in Shanghai, China for several years and I have shot extensively in Shenzhen and Dongguan, through many of the ups and down's. Please follow the link to view a selection of images, some recently shot and some unpublished. Of course a much wider selection of images are available on my archive. I hope you enjoy the images.
LINK: Click Here
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Today is a historic day. December 18th 2008 marks the 30th anniversary of Reform and Opening in China. That's right, modern China is exactly 30 years old today. And what an incredible 30 years it's been:
- 10%+ growth almost every year since 1980
- China now accounts for 6% Global GDP, in 1978 it was 1.8%
- A 70% increase in grain production
- 250 million people have lifted themselves out of abject poverty
- 200 million people have moved from the countryside to the city creating some dynamic world class cities like Shanghai and Beijing.
On December 18th 1978 Deng Xiaoping declared, after weeks of meetings and 2 years of internal in-fighting, that China was open for business. Since then the country has developed faster than any other country in history. This economic advancement has led to incredible social changes throughout the country and greatly altered the traditional way of life in China.
The key city to this Reform and Opening policy, and the economic boom that was to follow, was the border city of Shenzhen. Formerly a rice field, the city now boasts a stable population of over 10 million people, as well as one of the most successful, until recently, housing and job markets in the country. The city of Shenzhen has continually re-invented itself from being a border town, to a port and shipping town, to a manufacturing hub of textiles and low quality goods. Today it is home to some of China's most successful "home grown" companies like Huawei, BYD and Hansee.
Although, due to an economic crisis in around much of the world, much of the Shenzhen and Pearl River Delta manufacturing sector is currently struggling with rapidly falling demand in the United States and Europe; but the development of this region can not be overlooked as one of the main engines of Chinese growth for the last three decades.
I've been based in Shanghai, China for several years and I have shot extensively in Shenzhen and Dongguan, through many of the ups and down's. Please follow the link to view a selection of images, some recently shot and some unpublished. Of course a much wider selection of images are available on my archive. I hope you enjoy the images.
LINK: Click Here
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Gongga Work on Travel Photographer Blog
Hello,
Tewfic el-Sawy runs a lovely TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY BLOG that covers some of the most interesting travel and documentary photography being created by talented images makers from all corners of the world.
Today I'm pleased to let you know that The Travel Photographer is running a nice little SLIDE SHOW of my work from Gongga Shan, work at was included as an honorable mention in this years Banff Rocky Mountain Culture Awards. It's always nice to see an imbedded slideshow and a wider variety of images, I hope you agree.
Be sure to keep an eye on the Travel Photographer Blog over the coming months. Lots of quality photography sure to come.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Tewfic el-Sawy runs a lovely TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY BLOG that covers some of the most interesting travel and documentary photography being created by talented images makers from all corners of the world.
Today I'm pleased to let you know that The Travel Photographer is running a nice little SLIDE SHOW of my work from Gongga Shan, work at was included as an honorable mention in this years Banff Rocky Mountain Culture Awards. It's always nice to see an imbedded slideshow and a wider variety of images, I hope you agree.
Be sure to keep an eye on the Travel Photographer Blog over the coming months. Lots of quality photography sure to come.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Monday, December 15, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Canon 5D Mark II's everywhere for XMAS!!!!!
Hello,
I recently visited my local camera market in Shanghai, China; and I'm pleased to announced that every store in the market was flush with Canon 5D Mark II's. The first question many of you may have is: are they fake? The answer is no, my buddy bought one and spent the next few days shooting in Shanghai with lovely low-light results.
The second question many of you might have is: did they fall off the back of a truck? Perhaps. It's clear that Canon is suffering to get these things to market fast enough, and part of that might be because so many are available in China. I recently heard that some shooters in NYC have been on a waiting list for several months to get their 5D Mark II, and I can't help but wonder how many of these camera's in China were prepared for the US and European market but never made it there.
Now don't get me wrong, China has a flourishing photography scene with loads of gifted image makers that can afford a US$2600 camera; and I can assure you that they are flying off the shelves. But surely it's horrible PR for Canon that their newest, and most highly anticipated product in years, is more readily available in Shanghai, China then in the New York City or Paris or London.
So, did I pick one up? Not yet. Why am I waiting? I'm not sure really. I'm not a big techie and I'm not very interested in upgrading my equipment very often but these new 5D's seem to really be a massive improvement to digital image making. I'm sure I'll pick one up around Xmas, a small gift for myself after a manic year of running around this ever changing country that has become my adopted home.
To all those of you in North America and Europe you can't get your hands on a new 5D Mark II? If you're thinking of finally taking that trip to China, it might as well be now - we've got all the gear readily available.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I recently visited my local camera market in Shanghai, China; and I'm pleased to announced that every store in the market was flush with Canon 5D Mark II's. The first question many of you may have is: are they fake? The answer is no, my buddy bought one and spent the next few days shooting in Shanghai with lovely low-light results.
The second question many of you might have is: did they fall off the back of a truck? Perhaps. It's clear that Canon is suffering to get these things to market fast enough, and part of that might be because so many are available in China. I recently heard that some shooters in NYC have been on a waiting list for several months to get their 5D Mark II, and I can't help but wonder how many of these camera's in China were prepared for the US and European market but never made it there.
Now don't get me wrong, China has a flourishing photography scene with loads of gifted image makers that can afford a US$2600 camera; and I can assure you that they are flying off the shelves. But surely it's horrible PR for Canon that their newest, and most highly anticipated product in years, is more readily available in Shanghai, China then in the New York City or Paris or London.
So, did I pick one up? Not yet. Why am I waiting? I'm not sure really. I'm not a big techie and I'm not very interested in upgrading my equipment very often but these new 5D's seem to really be a massive improvement to digital image making. I'm sure I'll pick one up around Xmas, a small gift for myself after a manic year of running around this ever changing country that has become my adopted home.
To all those of you in North America and Europe you can't get your hands on a new 5D Mark II? If you're thinking of finally taking that trip to China, it might as well be now - we've got all the gear readily available.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Ryan Pyle Blog: Zeiss Lenses for Canon SLR's
Hello,
I'm not an equipment junkie, in fact I'm far from it. I am pretty unresponsive when friends in the industry email me links to blogs with new gear, new lenses, new software and the like. But a good friend of mine recently forwarded me a link that I got really excited about. It seems that Carl Zeiss is now making EF Mount lenses for Canon SLR's, wow!
I've been a Canon SLR user for my entire (relatively short) career and they carry the weight of much of my color editorial work. I've got 3 Canon EOS 1 film bodies and 1 Canon EOS 5D Digital body; along with a host of Canon lenses. But a few years ago I started dabbling with a Leica M6 and I use it for all of my Black and White work, and I've begun using it more and more in for my editorial assignments. It didn't take long, using the Leica Zeiss lenses, to notice that the image quality was superior in many many ways; but still I leaned towards my Canons because of their versatility and convenience.
Now, well it was announced a few months ago, Zeiss is making lenses for Canon Film and Digital SLR bodies and I'm on board in a big way. I've always been a big believer that the camera lens is far more important than the camera body and that quality lenses are an important element to strong image making. Zeiss has come out with a 50mm f/1.4 and an 85mm f/1.4. I'm keen on the 50mm and waiting for the 28mm to follow in early 2009.
The real kicker is that the Zeiss lenses are only marginally more expensive than their Canon counterparts. It seems like a no brainer to make the switch.
For years I've been reluctant to work in digital fearing image quality, but the induction of Zeiss lenses and the new Canon 5D Mark II may very well change my dinosaur-like old school perceptions of quality image making using digital SLR's.
So to all the folks at Zeiss, I'm excited, and let me tell you - it's a rare thing. So how about a free trial?
LINK TO STORY
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I'm not an equipment junkie, in fact I'm far from it. I am pretty unresponsive when friends in the industry email me links to blogs with new gear, new lenses, new software and the like. But a good friend of mine recently forwarded me a link that I got really excited about. It seems that Carl Zeiss is now making EF Mount lenses for Canon SLR's, wow!
I've been a Canon SLR user for my entire (relatively short) career and they carry the weight of much of my color editorial work. I've got 3 Canon EOS 1 film bodies and 1 Canon EOS 5D Digital body; along with a host of Canon lenses. But a few years ago I started dabbling with a Leica M6 and I use it for all of my Black and White work, and I've begun using it more and more in for my editorial assignments. It didn't take long, using the Leica Zeiss lenses, to notice that the image quality was superior in many many ways; but still I leaned towards my Canons because of their versatility and convenience.
Now, well it was announced a few months ago, Zeiss is making lenses for Canon Film and Digital SLR bodies and I'm on board in a big way. I've always been a big believer that the camera lens is far more important than the camera body and that quality lenses are an important element to strong image making. Zeiss has come out with a 50mm f/1.4 and an 85mm f/1.4. I'm keen on the 50mm and waiting for the 28mm to follow in early 2009.
The real kicker is that the Zeiss lenses are only marginally more expensive than their Canon counterparts. It seems like a no brainer to make the switch.
For years I've been reluctant to work in digital fearing image quality, but the induction of Zeiss lenses and the new Canon 5D Mark II may very well change my dinosaur-like old school perceptions of quality image making using digital SLR's.
So to all the folks at Zeiss, I'm excited, and let me tell you - it's a rare thing. So how about a free trial?
LINK TO STORY
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: New Work: Fragile China (Newsweek Cover & NYT)
Hello,
I just wanted to share some new and exciting work with you.
Much of China looks like it get caught up in this global financial slowdown. A government stimulus package for infrastructure should get China back in to that airy double digit growth region again. But some parts of China, and in fact some entire regions of China, are bracing themselves for a shock.
One of those regions is China's Pearl River Delta, home to much of the manufacturing that has helped make China the "Workshop of the World". I've done some work in the region the last few weeks and several of the images have been published in the USA. However, this week I am very honored to have the Cover of Newsweek International, in which they devoted their cover story to China's manufacturing slowdown and what that means for global business.
And I just completed another story about China's steel industry under pressure with the New York Times, Click Here.
You can see a scanned copy of the cover if you Click Here
You can find a link to more images from my series on Dongguan if you Click Here
You can read the Newsweek story if you Click Here
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Friday, December 12, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Mountain Culture Award: Honorable Mention
Hello,
I just wanted to write to make you aware of a photo essay I recently completed on Gongga Shan or Gongga Mountain. It was included as an Honorable Mention in the awards at the Banff Mountain Culture Awards earlier this year.
The photo essay was a journey through China's remote Sichuan province; departing from the Chinese town of Kangding my writing partner and I walked 4 days (at an average altitude of 4000m) to reach the remote Tibetan Gongga Mountain Monastery. It was very much a journey from Han China to Tibetan China at a time when relations between the two have been severely strained.
Over the years I've dedicated a lot of time to the documentation of various parts of the Tibetan community and this essay was one of the most rewarding, walking an average of 30km per day we passed through one of the most remote and isolated parts of Sichuan's ethnic Tibetan regions. The monastery was a full days walk from the nearest village, a two days walk form the nearest road and perched on the side of a mountain near the Gongga Mountain (7556m) base camp.
The monastery was visited by Dr. Joseph Rock in the 1920s when he documented and explored much of south west China for National Geographic. It was very much Dr. Rock's footsteps in which we walked and planned our journey.
A tight edit of the photo essay can be found at the Following Link
The Rocky Mountain Culture awards can be found at the Following Link
My Interview with the Mountain Culture center regarding the picture is below:
"I had first learned about Minya Konka, or Gongga Shan, from naturalist Joseph Rock. His work in eastern Tibet, now western Sichuan, was pioneering and when he first laid eyes on Minya Konka he believed he had found the largest mountain in the world. He wasn't far off. Minya Konka stands an impressive 7556m and towers above the rest of the range. It's a sight beyond words. The Minya Konka Tibetan Monastery rests at the base of the mountain. My journey to the monastery began on foot in the town of Laoyulin, just outside of Kangding. From there the four-day, 120-km trek to the monastery had taken its toll, walking at an average altitude of about 4000 m. But this is the way many of the pilgrims make the journey to this remote monastery, and it was important to follow in their footsteps to understand the significance of the temple and its role in the community. Each morning at the monastery one monk prays alone in the main prayer hall. It was a damp and cold morning and there was a lovely light coming in from the single window; my only concern was to do justice to the moment."
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: New Work: Taiwan Investing in China's Healthcare System
Hello,
I wanted to write and let you know of some recent work I completed on Taiwanese investment in China's healthcare industry. BenQ, a Taiwanese conglomerate mostly known for consumer electronics, has opened its first hospital in China geared towards China's medium and lower income families. Many Chinese have lost faith in the large state run hospitals where corruption and efficiencies are well documented. Many patients are keen to try something different and are beginning to put their faith in private hospitals like BenQ's new hospital outside of Nanjing, China - some 300km west of Shanghai.
The work was completed as an assignment with the Wall Street Journal. Below is a link to the article and Photo Essay slide show:
Link to Photos
Link to Article
A Larger Edit: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I wanted to write and let you know of some recent work I completed on Taiwanese investment in China's healthcare industry. BenQ, a Taiwanese conglomerate mostly known for consumer electronics, has opened its first hospital in China geared towards China's medium and lower income families. Many Chinese have lost faith in the large state run hospitals where corruption and efficiencies are well documented. Many patients are keen to try something different and are beginning to put their faith in private hospitals like BenQ's new hospital outside of Nanjing, China - some 300km west of Shanghai.
The work was completed as an assignment with the Wall Street Journal. Below is a link to the article and Photo Essay slide show:
Link to Photos
Link to Article
A Larger Edit: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Monday, November 24, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: 6 Months of Emptiness
Hello,
My efforts to "ramp up" my blog and make it a staple to the way I work has failed miserably.
If you take a look at when my last blog was it was May 23rd, from when I was covering an earthquake in China's Sichuan province. Since then I've added almost nothing to this blog. What's sad is that I've had an incredibly interesting few months of work and I have a lot of unique and interesting stories to share. Which leads me to the central question, why am I not blogging?
The answer has two very clear sides to it. The first is that I don't actually enjoy telling people where I am or what I am doing. Much of this comes from working in a country where the government puts a lot of pressure on foreign journalists. The second reason, and perhaps more importantly, is that I work in a hyper competitive environment being based in China. I'll just take a moment to look at each of these individually.
The government does make life difficult, exceedingly so for freelance journalists who don't have an accredited news company or publication behind their efforts, to access certain places in China for reporting. And I don't feel like letting everyone know where I am and what I am doing all the time. And saying you'll blog about something interesting later once you return to Shanghai never really works. So often I just end up writing nothing. Sad but true.
The second reason is that China is swimming with photographers, up to the brim. And I prefer not to talk too much about my work or what I am up to. Am I too sensitive? Perhaps. Is my work that interesting? Maybe not, but nonetheless that's how I feel about it.
My goals to improve my blog include trying to update my readers with more information about stories that I've completed and avoid discussing about what's in the pipeline. I hope that still makes for an interesting read. I'll also still try to communicate certain frustrations I have working in China and make people aware of certain long term projects, gallery shows and lectures that I'm involved with.
I hope I can stick with that. For those who want more up to date info just add me to your facebook, I tend to use my facebook page as a bit of a working blog so that my friends and family can also see what's going on. And facebook is much more picture and link friendly than this blog space........or at least it's more friendly for people like me who are barely computer literate.
Thanks for listening.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
My efforts to "ramp up" my blog and make it a staple to the way I work has failed miserably.
If you take a look at when my last blog was it was May 23rd, from when I was covering an earthquake in China's Sichuan province. Since then I've added almost nothing to this blog. What's sad is that I've had an incredibly interesting few months of work and I have a lot of unique and interesting stories to share. Which leads me to the central question, why am I not blogging?
The answer has two very clear sides to it. The first is that I don't actually enjoy telling people where I am or what I am doing. Much of this comes from working in a country where the government puts a lot of pressure on foreign journalists. The second reason, and perhaps more importantly, is that I work in a hyper competitive environment being based in China. I'll just take a moment to look at each of these individually.
The government does make life difficult, exceedingly so for freelance journalists who don't have an accredited news company or publication behind their efforts, to access certain places in China for reporting. And I don't feel like letting everyone know where I am and what I am doing all the time. And saying you'll blog about something interesting later once you return to Shanghai never really works. So often I just end up writing nothing. Sad but true.
The second reason is that China is swimming with photographers, up to the brim. And I prefer not to talk too much about my work or what I am up to. Am I too sensitive? Perhaps. Is my work that interesting? Maybe not, but nonetheless that's how I feel about it.
My goals to improve my blog include trying to update my readers with more information about stories that I've completed and avoid discussing about what's in the pipeline. I hope that still makes for an interesting read. I'll also still try to communicate certain frustrations I have working in China and make people aware of certain long term projects, gallery shows and lectures that I'm involved with.
I hope I can stick with that. For those who want more up to date info just add me to your facebook, I tend to use my facebook page as a bit of a working blog so that my friends and family can also see what's going on. And facebook is much more picture and link friendly than this blog space........or at least it's more friendly for people like me who are barely computer literate.
Thanks for listening.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Friday, May 23, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: China's Earthquake Coverage
Hello,
As some of you may know I've been working in China's earthquake ravaged Sichuan province for the last week or so and I've put together a strong selection of images that show the devastation that has hit the region.
I was recently interviewed by Daryl Lang of PDN Magazine on what my experiences covering the earthquake were like. Please follow the link below for article, interview and audio slide show.
Ryan Pyle
LINK: http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/newswire/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003807190
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
As some of you may know I've been working in China's earthquake ravaged Sichuan province for the last week or so and I've put together a strong selection of images that show the devastation that has hit the region.
I was recently interviewed by Daryl Lang of PDN Magazine on what my experiences covering the earthquake were like. Please follow the link below for article, interview and audio slide show.
Ryan Pyle
LINK: http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/newswire/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003807190
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Photo District News Award
Hello,
I just wanted to share some good news with everyone. An image of mine was recently included in the PDN Photo Annual. The PDN Photo Annual is an awards contest run by PDN, a photo industry magazine. The Photo Annual is a collection of the years most compelling images. I am very honored to have my work appear next to mentors of mine like Ed Kashi and Paolo Pellegrin.
The image I had selected is below, it was a story about China's first face transplant patient.
PDN LINK: http://gallery.pdnevents.com/annual2008/
Image LINK: http://archive.ryanpyle.com/my/Common/PhotoDetailPage.aspx?msa=0&pid=9741074&slid=872ff80f-20ed-40a7-903f-d75ee49a771a&slididx=21&lid=9746836&rstid=0eaa01db-e87a-42b9-8b40-568b5672d4b3&aid=1
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I just wanted to share some good news with everyone. An image of mine was recently included in the PDN Photo Annual. The PDN Photo Annual is an awards contest run by PDN, a photo industry magazine. The Photo Annual is a collection of the years most compelling images. I am very honored to have my work appear next to mentors of mine like Ed Kashi and Paolo Pellegrin.
The image I had selected is below, it was a story about China's first face transplant patient.
PDN LINK: http://gallery.pdnevents.com/annual2008/
Image LINK: http://archive.ryanpyle.com/my/Common/PhotoDetailPage.aspx?msa=0&pid=9741074&slid=872ff80f-20ed-40a7-903f-d75ee49a771a&slididx=21&lid=9746836&rstid=0eaa01db-e87a-42b9-8b40-568b5672d4b3&aid=1
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Saturday, April 05, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: The Real China and the Olympics
Hello,
I found this article on the Washington Post today and I feel that it needs to be shared. While I may not agree with all the points the writers raise, I do feel that it should be read and debated openly.
I have copied this from the Washington Post website and without prior consent by either the authors or the newspaper, should anyone object to my posting please let me know and I will remove it. I am not the author of this work, and my only reason for posting this piece to increase the exposure of this article. The article, and the direct link to the Washington Post are listed below:
LINK: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/04/AR2008040402982_pf.html
Article
______________________________
The Real China and the Olympics
By Hu Jia and Teng Biao
Saturday, April 5, 2008; A15
This week, a Beijing court sentenced human rights activist Hu Jia to 3 1/2 years in prison for subverting state authority and to one additional year's loss of his "political rights." He was arrested in part for co-authoring, with Teng Biao, an open letter on human rights. Below, The Post printsHuman Rights Watch's translation of the Sept. 10, 2007, letter.
On July 13th 2001, when Beijing won the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games, the Chinese government promised the world it would improve China's human rights record. In June 2004, Beijing announced its Olympic Games slogan, "One World, One Dream." From their inception in 1896, the modern Olympic Games have always had as their mission the promotion of human dignity and world peace. China and the world expected to see the Olympic Games bring political progress to the country. Is Beijing keeping its promises? Is China improving its human rights record?
When you come to the Olympic Games in Beijing, you will see skyscrapers, spacious streets, modern stadiums and enthusiastic people. You will see the truth, but not the whole truth, just as you see only the tip of an iceberg. You may not know that the flowers, smiles, harmony and prosperity are built on a base of grievances, tears, imprisonment, torture and blood.
We are going to tell you the truth about China. We believe that for anyone who wishes to avoid a disgraceful Olympics, knowing the truth is the first step. Fang Zheng, an excellent athlete who holds two national records for the discus throw at China's Special Sport Games, has been deprived of the opportunity to participate in the 2008 Paralympics because he has become a living testimony to the June 4, 1989[,] massacre. That morning, in Tiananmen Square, his legs were crushed by a tank while he was rescuing a fellow student. In April 2007, the Ministry of Public Security issued an internal document secretly strengthening a political investigation which resulted in forbidding Olympics participation by 43 types of people from 11 different categories, including dissidents, human rights defenders, media workers, and religious participants. The Chinese police never made the document known to either the Chinese public or the international community.
Huge investment in Olympic projects and a total lack of transparency have facilitated serious corruption and widespread bribery. Taxpayers are not allowed to supervise the use of investment amounting to more than $40 billion. Liu Zhihua, formerly in charge of Olympic construction and former deputy mayor of Beijing, was arrested for massive embezzlement.
To clear space for Olympic-related construction, thousands of civilian houses have been destroyed without their former owners being properly compensated. Brothers Ye Guozhu and Ye Guoqiang were imprisoned for a legal appeal after their house was forcibly demolished. Ye Guozhu has been repeatedly handcuffed and shackled, tied to a bed and beaten with electric batons. During the countdown to the Olympic Games he will continue to suffer from torture in Chaobei Prison in Tianjin.
It has been reported that over 1.25 million people have been forced to move because of Olympic construction; it was estimated that the figure would reach 1.5 million by the end of 2007. No formal resettlement scheme is in place for the over 400,000 migrants who have had their dwelling places demolished. Twenty percent of the demolished households are expected to experience poverty or extreme poverty. In Qingdao, the Olympic sailing city, hundreds of households have been demolished and many human rights activists as well as "civilians" have been imprisoned. Similar stories come from other Olympic cities such as Shenyang, Shanghai and Qinhuangdao.
In order to establish the image of civilized cities, the government has intensified the ban against -- and detention and forced repatriation of -- petitioners, beggars and the homeless. Some of them have been kept in extended detention in so-called shelters or have even been sent directly to labor camps. Street vendors have suffered brutal confiscation of their goods by municipal agents. On July 20, 2005, Lin Hongying, a 56-year-old woman farmer and vegetable dealer, was beaten to death by city patrols in Jiangsu. On November 19, 2005, city patrols in Wuxi beat 54-year-old bicycle repairman Wu Shouqing to death. In January 2007, petitioner Duan Huimin was killed by Shanghai police. On July 1, 2007, Chen Xiaoming, a Shanghai petitioner and human rights activist, died of an untreated illness during a lengthy detention period. On August 5, 2007, right before the one-year Olympics countdown, 200 petitioners were arrested in Beijing.
China has consistently persecuted human rights activists, political dissidents and freelance writers and journalists. The blind activist Chen Guangcheng, recipient of the 2007 Ramon Magsaysay Award and named in 2006 by Time Magazine as one of the most influential 100 people shaping our world, is still serving his sentence of four years and three months for exposing the truth of forced abortion and sterilization. The government refused to give him the Braille books and the radio that his relatives and friends brought to Linyi prison in Shandong. Chen has been beaten while serving his sentence. On August 24, 2007, Chen's wife, Yuan Weijing, was kidnapped by police at the Beijing airport while waiting to fly to the Philippines to receive the Ramon Magsaysay Award on behalf of her husband. On August 13, 2007, activist Yang Chunlin was arrested in Heilongjiang and charged with subversion of state power "for initiating the petition 'Human Rights before Olympics.' "
China still practices literary inquisition and holds the world record for detaining journalists and writers, as many as several hundred since 1989, according to incomplete statistics. As of this writing, 35 Chinese journalists and 51 writers are still in prison. Over 90 percent were arrested or tried after Beijing's successful bid for the Olympics in July 2001. For example, Shi Tao, a journalist and a poet, was sentenced to ten years in prison because of an e-mail sent to an overseas website. Dr. Xu Zerong, a scholar from Oxford University who researched the Korean War, was sentenced to 13 years' imprisonment for "illegally providing information abroad." Qingshuijun [Huang Jinqiu], a freelance writer, was sentenced to a 12-year term for his online publications. Some writers and dissidents are prohibited from going abroad; others from returning to China.
Every year in mainland China, countless websites are closed, blogs deleted, sensitive words filtered. Many websites hosted abroad are blocked. Overseas radio and television programs are interfered with or strictly prohibited. Although the Chinese government has promised media freedom for foreign journalists for 22 months, before, during, and after the Beijing Olympics, and ending on October 17, 2008, an FCCC [Foreign Correspondents Club in China] survey showed that 40 percent of foreign correspondents have experienced harassment, detention or an official warning during news gathering in Beijing and other areas. Some reporters have complained about repeated violent police interference at the time they were speaking with interviewees. Most seriously, Chinese interviewees usually become vulnerable as a result. In June 2006, Fu Xiancai was beaten and paralyzed after being interviewed by German media. In March 2007, Zheng Dajing was beaten and arrested after being interviewed by a British TV station.
Religious freedom is still under repression. In 2005, a Beijing pastor, Cai Zhuohua, was sentenced to three years for printing Bibles. Zhou Heng, a house church pastor in Xinjiang, was charged with running an "illegal operation" for receiving dozens of boxes of Bibles. From April to June 2007, China expelled over 100 suspected U.S., South Korean, Canadian, Australian, and other missionaries. Among them were humanitarian workers and language educators who had been teaching English in China for 15 years. During this so-called Typhoon 5 campaign, authorities took aim at missionary activities so as to prevent their recurrence during the Olympics.
On September 30, 2006, Chinese soldiers opened fire on 71 Tibetans who were escaping to Nepal. A 17-year-old nun died and a 20-year-old man was severely injured. Despite numerous international witnesses, the Chinese police insisted that the shooting was in self-defense. One year later, China tightened its control over Tibetan Buddhism. A September 1, 2007, regulation requires all reincarnated lamas to be approved by Chinese authorities, a requirement that flagrantly interferes with the tradition of reincarnation of living Buddhas as practiced in Tibet for thousands of years. In addition, Chinese authorities still ban the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet and a world-renowned pacifist, from returning to Tibet.
Since 1999, the government has banned many religious beliefs such as Falungong and the Three Servants. Their followers have experienced extremely cruel and planned persecutions. Many died from abuse, suffered torture, brainwashing, imprisonment and labor camp internment for persisting in their faith, possessing religious books, making DVDs and writing articles to expose the truth of the persecution.
China has the highest death penalty rate in the world. Execution statistics are treated as "state secrets." However, experts estimate that 8,000-10,000 people are sentenced to death in China every year, among them not only criminals and economic convicts, but totally innocent citizens, such as Nie Shubin, Teng Xingshan, Cao Haixin and Hugejiletu, whose innocence was proven only after they were already dead.
Another eight innocent farmers, Chen Guoqing, He Guoqiang, Yang Shiliang, Zhu Yanqiang, Huang Zhixiang, Fang Chunping, Cheng Fagen and Cheng Lihe, who confessed their "crimes" after being cruelly tortured by the police, have been sentenced to death and are currently held in prisons in Hebei [province] and in Jingdezhen [in Jiangxi province].
Torture is very common in China's detention centers, labor camps and prisons. Torture methods include electric shock, burning, use of electric needles, beating and hanging, sleep deprivation, forced chemical injection causing nerve damage, and piercing the fingers with needles. Every year, there are reported cases of Chinese citizens being disabled or killed by police torture.
Labor camps are still retained as a convenient Chinese system which allows the police to lock up citizens without trial for up to four years. The detention system is another practice that the police favor, freeing them to detain citizens for six months to two years. Dissidents and human rights activists are particularly vulnerable targets and are often sent to labor camps, detention centers or even mental hospitals by authorities who want to simplify legal procedures and mislead the media.
China has the world's largest secret police system, the Ministry of National Security (guo an) and the Internal Security Bureau (guo bao) of the Ministry of Public Security, which exercise power beyond the law. They can easily tap telephones, follow citizens, place them under house arrest, detain them and impose torture. On June 3, 2004, the Chinese secret police planted drugs on Chongqing dissident Xu Wanping and later sentenced him to 12 years' imprisonment for "subversion of state power."
Chinese citizens have no right to elect state leaders, local government officials or representatives. In fact, there has never been free exercise of election rights in township-level elections. Wuhan resident Sun Bu'er, a member of the banned political party the Pan-Blue Alliance, was brutally beaten in September 2006 for participating as an independent candidate during an election of county-level people's congress representatives. Mr. Sun disappeared on March 23, 2007.
China continues to cruelly discriminate against its rural population. According to the Chinese election law, a farmer's right to vote is worth one quarter of that of an urban resident. In June 2007, the Shanxi kiln scandal was exposed by the media. Thousands of 8- [to-]13[-]year-old trafficked children had been forced to labor in illegal kilns, almost all with local government connections. Many of the children were beaten, tortured and even buried alive.
The Chinese judiciary still illegally forbids any HIV/AIDS lawsuits against government officials responsible for the tragedy. AIDS sufferers and activists have been constantly harassed by the secret police.
The Chinese government has been selling arms and weapons to Darfur and other African regions to support ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. The Chinese authorities have forcibly repatriated North Korean refugees, knowing that they would be sent to labor camps or executed once back home. This significantly contravenes China's accession to the "Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees" and the "Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees."
· Please be aware that the Olympic Games will be held in a country where there are no elections, no freedom of religion, no independent courts, no independent trade unions; where demonstrations and strikes are prohibited; where torture and discrimination are supported by a sophisticated system of secret police; where the government encourages the violation of human rights and dignity, and is not willing to undertake any of its international obligations.
· Please consider whether the Olympic Games should coexist with religious persecution[,] labor camps, modern slavery, identity discrimination, secret police and crimes against humanity.
As the Beijing Olympics slogan says, we live in "one world" with "one dream." We hope that one day the Chinese people will be able to share universal human rights, democracy and peace with people from all around the world. However, we can see that the Chinese government obviously is not yet prepared to honor its promise. As a matter of fact, the preparations for the Olympics have provided the perfect excuse for the Chinese government to restrict civil liberties and suppress human rights!
We do not want China to be contained or isolated from the rest of the world. We believe that only by adhering to the principles of human rights and through open dialogue can the world community pressure the Chinese government to change. Ignoring these realities and tolerating barbaric atrocities in [the] name of the Beijing Olympics will disgrace the Olympic Charter and shake the foundations of humanity. Human rights improvement requires time, but we should at least stop China's human rights situation from deteriorating. Having the Olympics hosted in a country where human dignity is trampled on will not honor its people or the Olympic Games.
We sincerely hope that the Olympic Games will bring the values of peace, equality, freedom and justice to 1.3 billion Chinese citizens. We pray that the Olympics will be held in a free China. We must push for the 2008 Olympics to live up to the Olympic Charter[,] and we must advocate for the realization of "one world" with "one human rights dream." We believe that only an Olympic Games true to the Olympic Charter can promote China's democratic progress, world peace and development.
We firmly hold to the belief that there can be no true Olympic Games without human rights and dignity. For China and for the Olympics, human rights must be upheld!
Fini
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
I found this article on the Washington Post today and I feel that it needs to be shared. While I may not agree with all the points the writers raise, I do feel that it should be read and debated openly.
I have copied this from the Washington Post website and without prior consent by either the authors or the newspaper, should anyone object to my posting please let me know and I will remove it. I am not the author of this work, and my only reason for posting this piece to increase the exposure of this article. The article, and the direct link to the Washington Post are listed below:
LINK: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/04/AR2008040402982_pf.html
Article
______________________________
The Real China and the Olympics
By Hu Jia and Teng Biao
Saturday, April 5, 2008; A15
This week, a Beijing court sentenced human rights activist Hu Jia to 3 1/2 years in prison for subverting state authority and to one additional year's loss of his "political rights." He was arrested in part for co-authoring, with Teng Biao, an open letter on human rights. Below, The Post printsHuman Rights Watch's translation of the Sept. 10, 2007, letter.
On July 13th 2001, when Beijing won the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games, the Chinese government promised the world it would improve China's human rights record. In June 2004, Beijing announced its Olympic Games slogan, "One World, One Dream." From their inception in 1896, the modern Olympic Games have always had as their mission the promotion of human dignity and world peace. China and the world expected to see the Olympic Games bring political progress to the country. Is Beijing keeping its promises? Is China improving its human rights record?
When you come to the Olympic Games in Beijing, you will see skyscrapers, spacious streets, modern stadiums and enthusiastic people. You will see the truth, but not the whole truth, just as you see only the tip of an iceberg. You may not know that the flowers, smiles, harmony and prosperity are built on a base of grievances, tears, imprisonment, torture and blood.
We are going to tell you the truth about China. We believe that for anyone who wishes to avoid a disgraceful Olympics, knowing the truth is the first step. Fang Zheng, an excellent athlete who holds two national records for the discus throw at China's Special Sport Games, has been deprived of the opportunity to participate in the 2008 Paralympics because he has become a living testimony to the June 4, 1989[,] massacre. That morning, in Tiananmen Square, his legs were crushed by a tank while he was rescuing a fellow student. In April 2007, the Ministry of Public Security issued an internal document secretly strengthening a political investigation which resulted in forbidding Olympics participation by 43 types of people from 11 different categories, including dissidents, human rights defenders, media workers, and religious participants. The Chinese police never made the document known to either the Chinese public or the international community.
Huge investment in Olympic projects and a total lack of transparency have facilitated serious corruption and widespread bribery. Taxpayers are not allowed to supervise the use of investment amounting to more than $40 billion. Liu Zhihua, formerly in charge of Olympic construction and former deputy mayor of Beijing, was arrested for massive embezzlement.
To clear space for Olympic-related construction, thousands of civilian houses have been destroyed without their former owners being properly compensated. Brothers Ye Guozhu and Ye Guoqiang were imprisoned for a legal appeal after their house was forcibly demolished. Ye Guozhu has been repeatedly handcuffed and shackled, tied to a bed and beaten with electric batons. During the countdown to the Olympic Games he will continue to suffer from torture in Chaobei Prison in Tianjin.
It has been reported that over 1.25 million people have been forced to move because of Olympic construction; it was estimated that the figure would reach 1.5 million by the end of 2007. No formal resettlement scheme is in place for the over 400,000 migrants who have had their dwelling places demolished. Twenty percent of the demolished households are expected to experience poverty or extreme poverty. In Qingdao, the Olympic sailing city, hundreds of households have been demolished and many human rights activists as well as "civilians" have been imprisoned. Similar stories come from other Olympic cities such as Shenyang, Shanghai and Qinhuangdao.
In order to establish the image of civilized cities, the government has intensified the ban against -- and detention and forced repatriation of -- petitioners, beggars and the homeless. Some of them have been kept in extended detention in so-called shelters or have even been sent directly to labor camps. Street vendors have suffered brutal confiscation of their goods by municipal agents. On July 20, 2005, Lin Hongying, a 56-year-old woman farmer and vegetable dealer, was beaten to death by city patrols in Jiangsu. On November 19, 2005, city patrols in Wuxi beat 54-year-old bicycle repairman Wu Shouqing to death. In January 2007, petitioner Duan Huimin was killed by Shanghai police. On July 1, 2007, Chen Xiaoming, a Shanghai petitioner and human rights activist, died of an untreated illness during a lengthy detention period. On August 5, 2007, right before the one-year Olympics countdown, 200 petitioners were arrested in Beijing.
China has consistently persecuted human rights activists, political dissidents and freelance writers and journalists. The blind activist Chen Guangcheng, recipient of the 2007 Ramon Magsaysay Award and named in 2006 by Time Magazine as one of the most influential 100 people shaping our world, is still serving his sentence of four years and three months for exposing the truth of forced abortion and sterilization. The government refused to give him the Braille books and the radio that his relatives and friends brought to Linyi prison in Shandong. Chen has been beaten while serving his sentence. On August 24, 2007, Chen's wife, Yuan Weijing, was kidnapped by police at the Beijing airport while waiting to fly to the Philippines to receive the Ramon Magsaysay Award on behalf of her husband. On August 13, 2007, activist Yang Chunlin was arrested in Heilongjiang and charged with subversion of state power "for initiating the petition 'Human Rights before Olympics.' "
China still practices literary inquisition and holds the world record for detaining journalists and writers, as many as several hundred since 1989, according to incomplete statistics. As of this writing, 35 Chinese journalists and 51 writers are still in prison. Over 90 percent were arrested or tried after Beijing's successful bid for the Olympics in July 2001. For example, Shi Tao, a journalist and a poet, was sentenced to ten years in prison because of an e-mail sent to an overseas website. Dr. Xu Zerong, a scholar from Oxford University who researched the Korean War, was sentenced to 13 years' imprisonment for "illegally providing information abroad." Qingshuijun [Huang Jinqiu], a freelance writer, was sentenced to a 12-year term for his online publications. Some writers and dissidents are prohibited from going abroad; others from returning to China.
Every year in mainland China, countless websites are closed, blogs deleted, sensitive words filtered. Many websites hosted abroad are blocked. Overseas radio and television programs are interfered with or strictly prohibited. Although the Chinese government has promised media freedom for foreign journalists for 22 months, before, during, and after the Beijing Olympics, and ending on October 17, 2008, an FCCC [Foreign Correspondents Club in China] survey showed that 40 percent of foreign correspondents have experienced harassment, detention or an official warning during news gathering in Beijing and other areas. Some reporters have complained about repeated violent police interference at the time they were speaking with interviewees. Most seriously, Chinese interviewees usually become vulnerable as a result. In June 2006, Fu Xiancai was beaten and paralyzed after being interviewed by German media. In March 2007, Zheng Dajing was beaten and arrested after being interviewed by a British TV station.
Religious freedom is still under repression. In 2005, a Beijing pastor, Cai Zhuohua, was sentenced to three years for printing Bibles. Zhou Heng, a house church pastor in Xinjiang, was charged with running an "illegal operation" for receiving dozens of boxes of Bibles. From April to June 2007, China expelled over 100 suspected U.S., South Korean, Canadian, Australian, and other missionaries. Among them were humanitarian workers and language educators who had been teaching English in China for 15 years. During this so-called Typhoon 5 campaign, authorities took aim at missionary activities so as to prevent their recurrence during the Olympics.
On September 30, 2006, Chinese soldiers opened fire on 71 Tibetans who were escaping to Nepal. A 17-year-old nun died and a 20-year-old man was severely injured. Despite numerous international witnesses, the Chinese police insisted that the shooting was in self-defense. One year later, China tightened its control over Tibetan Buddhism. A September 1, 2007, regulation requires all reincarnated lamas to be approved by Chinese authorities, a requirement that flagrantly interferes with the tradition of reincarnation of living Buddhas as practiced in Tibet for thousands of years. In addition, Chinese authorities still ban the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet and a world-renowned pacifist, from returning to Tibet.
Since 1999, the government has banned many religious beliefs such as Falungong and the Three Servants. Their followers have experienced extremely cruel and planned persecutions. Many died from abuse, suffered torture, brainwashing, imprisonment and labor camp internment for persisting in their faith, possessing religious books, making DVDs and writing articles to expose the truth of the persecution.
China has the highest death penalty rate in the world. Execution statistics are treated as "state secrets." However, experts estimate that 8,000-10,000 people are sentenced to death in China every year, among them not only criminals and economic convicts, but totally innocent citizens, such as Nie Shubin, Teng Xingshan, Cao Haixin and Hugejiletu, whose innocence was proven only after they were already dead.
Another eight innocent farmers, Chen Guoqing, He Guoqiang, Yang Shiliang, Zhu Yanqiang, Huang Zhixiang, Fang Chunping, Cheng Fagen and Cheng Lihe, who confessed their "crimes" after being cruelly tortured by the police, have been sentenced to death and are currently held in prisons in Hebei [province] and in Jingdezhen [in Jiangxi province].
Torture is very common in China's detention centers, labor camps and prisons. Torture methods include electric shock, burning, use of electric needles, beating and hanging, sleep deprivation, forced chemical injection causing nerve damage, and piercing the fingers with needles. Every year, there are reported cases of Chinese citizens being disabled or killed by police torture.
Labor camps are still retained as a convenient Chinese system which allows the police to lock up citizens without trial for up to four years. The detention system is another practice that the police favor, freeing them to detain citizens for six months to two years. Dissidents and human rights activists are particularly vulnerable targets and are often sent to labor camps, detention centers or even mental hospitals by authorities who want to simplify legal procedures and mislead the media.
China has the world's largest secret police system, the Ministry of National Security (guo an) and the Internal Security Bureau (guo bao) of the Ministry of Public Security, which exercise power beyond the law. They can easily tap telephones, follow citizens, place them under house arrest, detain them and impose torture. On June 3, 2004, the Chinese secret police planted drugs on Chongqing dissident Xu Wanping and later sentenced him to 12 years' imprisonment for "subversion of state power."
Chinese citizens have no right to elect state leaders, local government officials or representatives. In fact, there has never been free exercise of election rights in township-level elections. Wuhan resident Sun Bu'er, a member of the banned political party the Pan-Blue Alliance, was brutally beaten in September 2006 for participating as an independent candidate during an election of county-level people's congress representatives. Mr. Sun disappeared on March 23, 2007.
China continues to cruelly discriminate against its rural population. According to the Chinese election law, a farmer's right to vote is worth one quarter of that of an urban resident. In June 2007, the Shanxi kiln scandal was exposed by the media. Thousands of 8- [to-]13[-]year-old trafficked children had been forced to labor in illegal kilns, almost all with local government connections. Many of the children were beaten, tortured and even buried alive.
The Chinese judiciary still illegally forbids any HIV/AIDS lawsuits against government officials responsible for the tragedy. AIDS sufferers and activists have been constantly harassed by the secret police.
The Chinese government has been selling arms and weapons to Darfur and other African regions to support ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. The Chinese authorities have forcibly repatriated North Korean refugees, knowing that they would be sent to labor camps or executed once back home. This significantly contravenes China's accession to the "Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees" and the "Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees."
· Please be aware that the Olympic Games will be held in a country where there are no elections, no freedom of religion, no independent courts, no independent trade unions; where demonstrations and strikes are prohibited; where torture and discrimination are supported by a sophisticated system of secret police; where the government encourages the violation of human rights and dignity, and is not willing to undertake any of its international obligations.
· Please consider whether the Olympic Games should coexist with religious persecution[,] labor camps, modern slavery, identity discrimination, secret police and crimes against humanity.
As the Beijing Olympics slogan says, we live in "one world" with "one dream." We hope that one day the Chinese people will be able to share universal human rights, democracy and peace with people from all around the world. However, we can see that the Chinese government obviously is not yet prepared to honor its promise. As a matter of fact, the preparations for the Olympics have provided the perfect excuse for the Chinese government to restrict civil liberties and suppress human rights!
We do not want China to be contained or isolated from the rest of the world. We believe that only by adhering to the principles of human rights and through open dialogue can the world community pressure the Chinese government to change. Ignoring these realities and tolerating barbaric atrocities in [the] name of the Beijing Olympics will disgrace the Olympic Charter and shake the foundations of humanity. Human rights improvement requires time, but we should at least stop China's human rights situation from deteriorating. Having the Olympics hosted in a country where human dignity is trampled on will not honor its people or the Olympic Games.
We sincerely hope that the Olympic Games will bring the values of peace, equality, freedom and justice to 1.3 billion Chinese citizens. We pray that the Olympics will be held in a free China. We must push for the 2008 Olympics to live up to the Olympic Charter[,] and we must advocate for the realization of "one world" with "one human rights dream." We believe that only an Olympic Games true to the Olympic Charter can promote China's democratic progress, world peace and development.
We firmly hold to the belief that there can be no true Olympic Games without human rights and dignity. For China and for the Olympics, human rights must be upheld!
Fini
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: A Marked Man?
Hello,
Well, two blogs about Tibet in a week and now my internet problems have worsened severely. I am not getting emails people are sending me and I sent two emails yesterday that were never received.
My gmail has almost stopped working all together and my website access has reached entirely new levels of slow-ness. Could I have gone to bed in Shanghai and woken up in remote Africa? No, I don't think so. I am still in Shanghai in my western style apartment complex watching my pictures upload at 4 kb/s.
I read an article in the Economist a few weeks ago were some people believe that pollution costs about 4-8% GDP in China per year. Meaning that China's pollution and their complete lack to do anything about it costs hundreds of millions of dollars a year, or whatever 4-8% of total country GDP happens to equal.
I would love to see a statistic about how much percentage of GDP it costs to keep the internet running at a snails pace. I know it would be much less than the environment, and I don't for a minute feel that slow internet access is more important than China's growing environmental problems. But wouldn't it be great if someone could quantify China's strangle hold on the internet?
While it's true that the government un-blocked the BBC last week, and it's been very exciting to catch up on my football scores as the Champion's league heads in to its Semi-Finals, but there is so much more blocked and in fact the access seems to be generally slower than it was a year ago.
A friend of mine and I were discussing last night, there is no country in the world more paranoid of free thought than China. The government blocks websites to protect its people from dangerous internet content, and that may have flown 5 or 10 years ago when China was in it's infancy stage of internet communications, but these days are different. China is in fact leading the world in broadband subscriptions and internet users, don't you think these 300 or 400 million people can decide what is good and bad for themselves?
How many jobs are created by trying to police the internet? A New York Times article from 2006 indicated that there are over 100,000 people with government jobs in various ministries controlling and watching the internet. That sounds like an absurd amount of people who are essentially wasting everyone's time.
I was in the Hong Kong airport last week, returning from the Philippines for work, and I had a two hour wait for my next flight back to Shanghai. So I bought a coffee, popped open my laptop and uploaded more pictures in 90 minutes than I can upload in 2 days at home - and this is while sitting in the airport between flights in Hong Kong using their FREE broadband connection. It's good to know some countries can get things right.
If someone wanted to ask me how much of my personal income potential is sacrificed each year because of slow uploading time or having me have to sit in front of my computer and watch each FTP so that it doesn't click off; I wouldn't hesitate. I would easily say 7-10%. Meaning that slow internet access in China effects my personal business, and at least 7-10% of my working hours or efficiently is disrupted by 3rd world internet dial up speeds in what is supposed to be the Paris of the East, the new Tokyo, the next Hong Kong................or as I like to say, my slow slow Shanghai.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Well, two blogs about Tibet in a week and now my internet problems have worsened severely. I am not getting emails people are sending me and I sent two emails yesterday that were never received.
My gmail has almost stopped working all together and my website access has reached entirely new levels of slow-ness. Could I have gone to bed in Shanghai and woken up in remote Africa? No, I don't think so. I am still in Shanghai in my western style apartment complex watching my pictures upload at 4 kb/s.
I read an article in the Economist a few weeks ago were some people believe that pollution costs about 4-8% GDP in China per year. Meaning that China's pollution and their complete lack to do anything about it costs hundreds of millions of dollars a year, or whatever 4-8% of total country GDP happens to equal.
I would love to see a statistic about how much percentage of GDP it costs to keep the internet running at a snails pace. I know it would be much less than the environment, and I don't for a minute feel that slow internet access is more important than China's growing environmental problems. But wouldn't it be great if someone could quantify China's strangle hold on the internet?
While it's true that the government un-blocked the BBC last week, and it's been very exciting to catch up on my football scores as the Champion's league heads in to its Semi-Finals, but there is so much more blocked and in fact the access seems to be generally slower than it was a year ago.
A friend of mine and I were discussing last night, there is no country in the world more paranoid of free thought than China. The government blocks websites to protect its people from dangerous internet content, and that may have flown 5 or 10 years ago when China was in it's infancy stage of internet communications, but these days are different. China is in fact leading the world in broadband subscriptions and internet users, don't you think these 300 or 400 million people can decide what is good and bad for themselves?
How many jobs are created by trying to police the internet? A New York Times article from 2006 indicated that there are over 100,000 people with government jobs in various ministries controlling and watching the internet. That sounds like an absurd amount of people who are essentially wasting everyone's time.
I was in the Hong Kong airport last week, returning from the Philippines for work, and I had a two hour wait for my next flight back to Shanghai. So I bought a coffee, popped open my laptop and uploaded more pictures in 90 minutes than I can upload in 2 days at home - and this is while sitting in the airport between flights in Hong Kong using their FREE broadband connection. It's good to know some countries can get things right.
If someone wanted to ask me how much of my personal income potential is sacrificed each year because of slow uploading time or having me have to sit in front of my computer and watch each FTP so that it doesn't click off; I wouldn't hesitate. I would easily say 7-10%. Meaning that slow internet access in China effects my personal business, and at least 7-10% of my working hours or efficiently is disrupted by 3rd world internet dial up speeds in what is supposed to be the Paris of the East, the new Tokyo, the next Hong Kong................or as I like to say, my slow slow Shanghai.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Exhibition: Chinese Turkistan
Hello,
For many of you, coming to Toronto to see my exhibition on Chinese Turkistan was simply impossible. So I have prepared a link with the images so that you can view. Enjoy.
IMAGES LINK: http://archive.ryanpyle.com/my/glbs.aspx?msid=2223&lid=15392186&e=0&p=0
Brief:
Ryan Pyle has been visiting China's western Xinjiang province regularly since 2001. But it wasn't until a recent trip in 2006 that he decided to begin to focus his camera on this mysterious and remote part of the world.
Formerly known as Chinese Turkistan, this vast expanse of deserts and mountains has seemingly always been at a crossroads between cultures and time. For centuries criminals, holy men, and traders tramped across the region; and it was out of this tradition that the silk road was established.
Surrounded on three sides by some of the highest mountain ranges in the world, with the Gobi desert blocking the fourth, Chinese Turkistan is one of the most isolated places on earth.
Ryan, in his project, has begun to look at life in this region. Drawn by its abundance of life, colorful minorities, harsh landscapes and Islam; Ryan visits mosques, local herdsmen, farming communities and former silk road trading posts trying to capture what he feels is a culture under threat from China's breakneck growth in the region.
"The culture is vanishing before my eyes", Ryan says, "each time I return something is missing: a market, an old shop full of blacksmiths, a local mosque." Traveling only with a Uygur translator, Ryan feels that the importance of capturing this culture is paramount because it is disappearing. "No other country in the world is knocking down old buildings faster to make way for new hotels, highways and airports than China. A few more years and there might not be much left at all; the whole country, from Beijing to Kashgar, is starting to look the same. A pity really, the cultural diversity being lost is not something that can be faked, or easily brought back. This cultural fabric will be lost forever."
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
For many of you, coming to Toronto to see my exhibition on Chinese Turkistan was simply impossible. So I have prepared a link with the images so that you can view. Enjoy.
IMAGES LINK: http://archive.ryanpyle.com/my/glbs.aspx?msid=2223&lid=15392186&e=0&p=0
Brief:
Ryan Pyle has been visiting China's western Xinjiang province regularly since 2001. But it wasn't until a recent trip in 2006 that he decided to begin to focus his camera on this mysterious and remote part of the world.
Formerly known as Chinese Turkistan, this vast expanse of deserts and mountains has seemingly always been at a crossroads between cultures and time. For centuries criminals, holy men, and traders tramped across the region; and it was out of this tradition that the silk road was established.
Surrounded on three sides by some of the highest mountain ranges in the world, with the Gobi desert blocking the fourth, Chinese Turkistan is one of the most isolated places on earth.
Ryan, in his project, has begun to look at life in this region. Drawn by its abundance of life, colorful minorities, harsh landscapes and Islam; Ryan visits mosques, local herdsmen, farming communities and former silk road trading posts trying to capture what he feels is a culture under threat from China's breakneck growth in the region.
"The culture is vanishing before my eyes", Ryan says, "each time I return something is missing: a market, an old shop full of blacksmiths, a local mosque." Traveling only with a Uygur translator, Ryan feels that the importance of capturing this culture is paramount because it is disappearing. "No other country in the world is knocking down old buildings faster to make way for new hotels, highways and airports than China. A few more years and there might not be much left at all; the whole country, from Beijing to Kashgar, is starting to look the same. A pity really, the cultural diversity being lost is not something that can be faked, or easily brought back. This cultural fabric will be lost forever."
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Ryan Pyle Blog: Tibet: Two Misconceptions
Hello,
When trying to understand the differences in the media coverage of Tibet between Western countries and China, I think it's important that we keep one thing in mind; that is that the average Chinese and average western observer might not have any real idea about what they are talking about at all. Let me explain further.
Obviously the Chinese media is biased. They rarely report anything objectively and they constantly try to spin things to benefit their means. The recent violence in Tibet is no exception. Coverage both on television and in the papers has reached new levels of laugh-ability and is generally a disgrace to the profession in general. Now in saying that, the western coverage has been surprisingly horrid. While the big players have all done well in documenting the events, pictures have been shown in secondary newspapers across Europe and North America of riots and protests of Tibetans in India and Nepal, with captions indicating that they are taking place in Lhasa. Shocking I know. In general the western media has always been sympathetic, to a fault, of Tibet. While it is true that China has taken the territory by force and ran it with little or no recognition for its original inhabitants, fire bombing innocent Chinese business men and shop keepers is not the way out of this mess. But, let me get back to my original point about misconceptions.
The Western Misconception
There has been a rash of blog posting in the last week or so by Chinese bloggers condemning the actions of Tibetan rioters against Chinese people in Tibet. And I must agree, fire bombs being throne in to Chinese stores and incredible levels of violence against innocent Chinese citizens and small business owners are completely unacceptable. Clearly the grievances of the Tibetan people lay with the government which marginalizes them as second class citizens and forces them to repress their religious beliefs; so attacks on ordinary Chinese folks just seems a bit over the top. Which leads me to my first point, Tibetans are violent people and they are hard as nails, so to speak. There is a common misconception in the west that all Tibetan people are buddhist and they are peaceful and would never hurt anyone or anything. And while that is a fairly reliable description of monks and people over 60 years old in Tibet, clearly there are many Tibetans who are not monks and there are many who are young and passionate about their culture. Tibetan people have a strong and proud tradition as hunters, nomads and farmers, and only recently as city dwellers. It has been my experience, traveling in the region for the last seven years, that no matter what the background of tradition, Tibetans can be down right nasty both to each other and to anyone who happens to get in their way.
Violence has been as big a part of Tibetan culture as Buddhism has been over the last thousand years or so, but it is almost never discussed or debated. In fact, in the 10th century, a warlike Tibetan nation was one of the great imperial powers of Asia with their armies stretched deep in to Central Asia, Central India and Western China. More recently Tibet had always been, prior to the 1950s, been a vast lawless frontier where anything went, and there was much tribal warfare within Tibetan clans competing for farming land, live stock and even women. Nomads within Tibet have had, going back to the days of the Silk Road, always been feared for their ruthless banditry, robbing caravans of merchants crossing from Mongolia to Chinese Turkistan who accidently ventured to closely to Tibet's northern frontier.
Buddhism arrived in Tibet in the middle of the 7th century and although it spread slowly over the next few hundred years the religions spread seemed to calm the Tibetan warlike ambition, but large cliques and groups continued their ways of violence. Understanding the Tibetan forms of punishment may help us understand the levels of violence that were once deemed acceptable. In 1929, in his book THE LAND OF THE LAMAS David McDonald witnesses mutilation as a form of punishment for crimes. Men who had committed certain crimes had red hot irons thrust in to their eye sockets, and some had boiling water poured over their eyes; this was a typical punishment for murder or theft from monasteries.
While writers and journalists of our era often have experiences, and myself is included in this group, of the humorous, hospitable and trustworthy Tibetans; this is not the only side of the Tibetan people and like all of us in the west and within China, we all have our nasty sides. Especially when being continuously pressured and belittled.
The Chinese Misconception:
While the first misconception is from outsiders looking in, the second misconception is from Chinese people within China. It is safe to say that the average Chinese person has little or no idea of the history of Tibetan culture and the historically brutal treatment that the Tibetans have received at the hands of the Chinese over the last 60 years. Chinese propaganda and the re-writing of history reigns supreme and many bloggers have only vague ideas of the true history between Tibet and China, and the activities of the Cultural Revolution. While 60 years of intimidation and suppression are still no excuses to take the lives of innocent shop keepers, it can lend value to understanding just how desperate the Tibetans feel, and how serious this problem will become if not dealt with effectively.
Much of the understanding in China about Tibet comes from a "version" history I described above. Most Chinese are taught in schools that Tibetans are culture-less nomads, barbarians who have rapped and pillaged for centuries. This type of thought control allows Chinese to feel superior to their minority peoples and therefore gives them a "moral green light" - so to speak - in running the territories they live in. The comment in my last blog about Tibet is a prime example of this mis-education, whereby the current party secretary in Tibet referred to Tibetan people as children and mentioned that the Communist Party was the Tibetan people's real Buddha. A whole new level of sickness, but in his mind he is completely justified because he has been taught since he was a child that Tibetans are less than human, or at least less than a Han Chinese.
Had Chinese people had un-biased books to read from and a less-slanted post secondary education, they may understand that their government has made some unforgivable mistakes over the last 60 years in Tibet; but my hope is that all of that will be pushed to the past and a new reconciliation will begin. Now is the time, dialog is the only way to end this suppression and the negative media attention it attracts. And while this is my hope, this will most certainly not become reality.
The Chinese government will do what it does best: suppress, suppress, suppress. They will blame the Dali Lama because that's all they really know how to do. Imagine if they preformed an internal investigation into their own policy in Tibet, and then made changes?
It'll never happen, blaming is easier and a clear sign of guilt and ignorance. Economic growth and emerging global power has fueled Chinese Nationalism to ever dangerous levels, arrogance and self-ritiousness is visible throughout all levels of government and society; for too many there is little reason for change. And so minorities continue to suffer.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
When trying to understand the differences in the media coverage of Tibet between Western countries and China, I think it's important that we keep one thing in mind; that is that the average Chinese and average western observer might not have any real idea about what they are talking about at all. Let me explain further.
Obviously the Chinese media is biased. They rarely report anything objectively and they constantly try to spin things to benefit their means. The recent violence in Tibet is no exception. Coverage both on television and in the papers has reached new levels of laugh-ability and is generally a disgrace to the profession in general. Now in saying that, the western coverage has been surprisingly horrid. While the big players have all done well in documenting the events, pictures have been shown in secondary newspapers across Europe and North America of riots and protests of Tibetans in India and Nepal, with captions indicating that they are taking place in Lhasa. Shocking I know. In general the western media has always been sympathetic, to a fault, of Tibet. While it is true that China has taken the territory by force and ran it with little or no recognition for its original inhabitants, fire bombing innocent Chinese business men and shop keepers is not the way out of this mess. But, let me get back to my original point about misconceptions.
The Western Misconception
There has been a rash of blog posting in the last week or so by Chinese bloggers condemning the actions of Tibetan rioters against Chinese people in Tibet. And I must agree, fire bombs being throne in to Chinese stores and incredible levels of violence against innocent Chinese citizens and small business owners are completely unacceptable. Clearly the grievances of the Tibetan people lay with the government which marginalizes them as second class citizens and forces them to repress their religious beliefs; so attacks on ordinary Chinese folks just seems a bit over the top. Which leads me to my first point, Tibetans are violent people and they are hard as nails, so to speak. There is a common misconception in the west that all Tibetan people are buddhist and they are peaceful and would never hurt anyone or anything. And while that is a fairly reliable description of monks and people over 60 years old in Tibet, clearly there are many Tibetans who are not monks and there are many who are young and passionate about their culture. Tibetan people have a strong and proud tradition as hunters, nomads and farmers, and only recently as city dwellers. It has been my experience, traveling in the region for the last seven years, that no matter what the background of tradition, Tibetans can be down right nasty both to each other and to anyone who happens to get in their way.
Violence has been as big a part of Tibetan culture as Buddhism has been over the last thousand years or so, but it is almost never discussed or debated. In fact, in the 10th century, a warlike Tibetan nation was one of the great imperial powers of Asia with their armies stretched deep in to Central Asia, Central India and Western China. More recently Tibet had always been, prior to the 1950s, been a vast lawless frontier where anything went, and there was much tribal warfare within Tibetan clans competing for farming land, live stock and even women. Nomads within Tibet have had, going back to the days of the Silk Road, always been feared for their ruthless banditry, robbing caravans of merchants crossing from Mongolia to Chinese Turkistan who accidently ventured to closely to Tibet's northern frontier.
Buddhism arrived in Tibet in the middle of the 7th century and although it spread slowly over the next few hundred years the religions spread seemed to calm the Tibetan warlike ambition, but large cliques and groups continued their ways of violence. Understanding the Tibetan forms of punishment may help us understand the levels of violence that were once deemed acceptable. In 1929, in his book THE LAND OF THE LAMAS David McDonald witnesses mutilation as a form of punishment for crimes. Men who had committed certain crimes had red hot irons thrust in to their eye sockets, and some had boiling water poured over their eyes; this was a typical punishment for murder or theft from monasteries.
While writers and journalists of our era often have experiences, and myself is included in this group, of the humorous, hospitable and trustworthy Tibetans; this is not the only side of the Tibetan people and like all of us in the west and within China, we all have our nasty sides. Especially when being continuously pressured and belittled.
The Chinese Misconception:
While the first misconception is from outsiders looking in, the second misconception is from Chinese people within China. It is safe to say that the average Chinese person has little or no idea of the history of Tibetan culture and the historically brutal treatment that the Tibetans have received at the hands of the Chinese over the last 60 years. Chinese propaganda and the re-writing of history reigns supreme and many bloggers have only vague ideas of the true history between Tibet and China, and the activities of the Cultural Revolution. While 60 years of intimidation and suppression are still no excuses to take the lives of innocent shop keepers, it can lend value to understanding just how desperate the Tibetans feel, and how serious this problem will become if not dealt with effectively.
Much of the understanding in China about Tibet comes from a "version" history I described above. Most Chinese are taught in schools that Tibetans are culture-less nomads, barbarians who have rapped and pillaged for centuries. This type of thought control allows Chinese to feel superior to their minority peoples and therefore gives them a "moral green light" - so to speak - in running the territories they live in. The comment in my last blog about Tibet is a prime example of this mis-education, whereby the current party secretary in Tibet referred to Tibetan people as children and mentioned that the Communist Party was the Tibetan people's real Buddha. A whole new level of sickness, but in his mind he is completely justified because he has been taught since he was a child that Tibetans are less than human, or at least less than a Han Chinese.
Had Chinese people had un-biased books to read from and a less-slanted post secondary education, they may understand that their government has made some unforgivable mistakes over the last 60 years in Tibet; but my hope is that all of that will be pushed to the past and a new reconciliation will begin. Now is the time, dialog is the only way to end this suppression and the negative media attention it attracts. And while this is my hope, this will most certainly not become reality.
The Chinese government will do what it does best: suppress, suppress, suppress. They will blame the Dali Lama because that's all they really know how to do. Imagine if they preformed an internal investigation into their own policy in Tibet, and then made changes?
It'll never happen, blaming is easier and a clear sign of guilt and ignorance. Economic growth and emerging global power has fueled Chinese Nationalism to ever dangerous levels, arrogance and self-ritiousness is visible throughout all levels of government and society; for too many there is little reason for change. And so minorities continue to suffer.
--
Cheers,
Ryan Pyle
Photographer
ryan@ryanpyle.com
Website: www.ryanpyle.com
Archive: http://archive.ryanpyle.com
_______________________________________
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